Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Is it not the case that the directive will provide for the outsourcing of debt collection and enforcement of the security, which could involve eviction proceedings by a credit servicer or a vulture fund? A number of concerns have been raised by consumer rights advocates, for example by Professor Padraic Kenna of the University of Galway. He says this directive could transform the treatment of non-performing loans, NPLs, in the EU. We know that 15% of home loans are already held by vulture funds, thanks to Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. As the European consumer organisation has noted, those who seek to maximise profits on the back of vulnerable customers should face restrictions, not legislative support. They do not operate like traditional retail banks. It has been warned that the facilitation of lenders to sell NPLs to vulture funds that are not based in the EU and could outsource debt collection activities could lead to a race to the bottom. How does the Minister respond to some of those concerns from European organisations?

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